Ben
by Orne
Summary: fork point in my series, happens after Happy Birthday
1. Default Chapter

Intro

****

BEN

This is a totally new thing for me, it's after my Fic "Happy Birthday", or before it, what if Cole hadn't come back, and if things had happened just a bit differently. Phoebe found out she was pregnant two months after Cole left, she had her baby and named him Ben like her first child, (the one David helped to lose). David's back for this one, I know a lot of you don't like him, some of you pity him, but I do know that a lot of you like him because he the consequential "bad" character. Let's see where this fic goes. Maybe he might not be so bad after all J 

Hope you like it!!

Note: also, all reviews are appreciated and if you do please let me know if you want em to continues with "VAMPIRE CHRONICLES??" I've noticed that people haven't been as receptive of it as my other Fics, but if at least one person wants me to continue it, I will J .


	2. Ben

Phoebe walked down the hall into the half open door, she peaked in and smiled. He was sleeping. Her baby was sleeping. She walked to his little boy bed and sat on it, she saw him turn and his eyes open. "ma?" he cooed, "yeah, honey it's me, I came to kiss you good night" she said, planting a kiss on his forehead, she retracted and his arms reached out for her, she smiled down t him, "you wanna sleep with me tonight?" she asked, he smiled, his blue eyes sparkled by the reflection of his night light, he looked so much like his father. The same eyes, the same smile, the same black hair. He shot up in her arms and hugged her, she smiled and hugged him back. She carried him to her room, his arms never unwrapping from her neck. "what are you two doing up so late?" Piper said, they turned and smiled, Piper smiled back "Ben?" she asked, "mommy woke me up" he said quickly, he knew how not to get in trouble, 4 years in the Halliwell home, you kind of knew what lines to use, even if you were just a baby. "you lie" Phoebe said, setting him on the floor, he smiled up at her and than turned to Piper. "why are you up late?" he asked inquisitively, Piper stared at him and than looked at Phoebe "I swear to god, he's just like you" Piper said. 

They had noticed that Ben was much more advanced than the other kids. For one, he was very well built, he was strong too, his intelligence was by a long shot very developed. He Began speaking when he was four months, he walked when he was 5. It was all do to the demon inside, courtesy of his father's inheritance. They didn't mind much, they had all agreed on binding it, until he was old enough to use his powers, for good. Of course he knew that his mother and his aunts were witches, he was surrounded constantly by demons and warlocks, of course none of them attacked him, they never sensed his demon half, it was very well bound. He knew very well that when there was an attack he should run to his room and lock the door, and come out only when on of his aunts or his uncle Leo told him to. He never found what he was exposed to unusual, although Phoebe had explained to him that he and his family were different from everybody else. He understood it perfectly, Phoebe was amazed at this, she didn't know how a 3 year old could understand the difference. Somehow he did and Phoebe and the Halliwells were all very thankful.

"You know you should go to bed, it's way past your bed time" Piper preached, Phoebe smiled at him and nodded, "you really should" she said, Ben looked pleadingly at her, she kneeled to his height "boo, you really should" she explained, he nodded defeated and kissed his mother, he than turned to Piper and frowned at her, "I don't like you" he said, Piper pretended to be hurt, she knew he didn't like that Piper was the mother type, while Phoebe was a child with him. "but I'm still going to kiss you" he said jumping up and reaching for Piper, she caught him in her arms and laughed, he kissed her cheek and she kissed his forehead, she set him back down. Both of them watched as he raced to his room and jumped in his bed. 

They both made their way down to the kitchen, neither of them could get a wink of sleep. Piper didn't know why she couldn't sleep, but she knew very well why Phoebe couldn't. She knew Phoebe hadn't had a decent night of sleep in Four years. At first she assumed it was because of Ben, a baby cries and needs midnight feedings, but as he grew he no longer cried and slept through the night ver soundly. Than Piper deduced it was because of Cole. The way he left her and two months later she found out she was pregnant really got to her. But she had gotten over it, she had found a job as an elementary teacher, she taught first grade, and had finally gotten her life back on track and with Ben more reason to get it back on track fast.

"Why couldn't you sleep?" Phoebe asked Piper, taking her out of her thoughts, "I don't know" she said, as they entered the kitchen, "want tea?" Piper asked as she filled the kettle, "sure" Phoebe said as she sat down on the table. Piper joined her while she waited for the water to boil. "so, what are you doing tomorrow?" Piper asked, "well, um, Ben and I are going to the park with David" Phoebe said, Piper made a frustrated sound and got up, "what?" Phoebe asked, "why do you hang out with him? I mean, after what he did, you lost your first child because of him" Piper said, "yes, but he's helped me raise my second, I think he's made amends for what he's done" Phoebe argued, in her heart she still knew David was a good man. "that's not the point, do you know what he put you and Cole through?" Piper asked enraged, "yes, I was there, thank you" Phoebe said, getting up, walking toward Piper, "than what the hell is wrong with you?" she asked, "Piper, he loves Ben, almost like a father does, almost like Cole would have, and Ben is very fond of him, he likes playing with him and… given the lack of a parental figure, I think that David has done a pretty god job" Phoebe explained, "Cole could've done better" Piper stated, "yeah, well, Cole left, he isn't here" Phoebe said enraged. She hated talking about him, but it was inevitable. "I'm sorry Pheebs, I just.." Piper said, "I know, but he needs a father, or at least someone to teach him how to play football and man stuff, and Leo is never around not to mention he crumbles like a piece of paper, so…" Phoebe said, she knew it was lame excuse, but what the hell, she was tired. "I just can't help but think that, he wants to take Cole's place" Piper said, as she poured the water in the cups. "he could never do that Piper, Cole will always be Ben's father, I mean, he may not know it, but Ben knows that David isn't his father, I mean, Ben knows that his dad had to leave, I never told him why, and I never said he was dead or anything, I mean, he knows that his father is out there, but I just, I think that he needs a father, or at least someone that would guide him as a father would, I can't handle this by myself" Phoebe explained, "but, you're not by yourself, me and Paige are here, and Leo" Piper said, Phoebe hugged her, "I know, I know and thank you" she said, tears swelling to her eyes, she was so glad her sisters were there for her.

Cole walked into the old house, expecting to find a house full of dust and mold, instead, it wasn't, it was rather clean, he hadn't been here for four years and it was still clean, somebody had had to come by, and he had a pretty good idea of who it was. He wanted to go to her, he wanted to see her, but he couldn't. How could he face her?, after four years, he had left her and now to barge back into her life would be a calamity. He put down his bag and looked around, it was so good to be home. To be back, a smile crept his lips, he knew now that he had made the right choice in coming back to San Francisco. He had left the underworld because he was tired of the missions, he no longer cared about them, he just wanted to live a normal life, so he asked the source to let him go, he let him if he did one more mission, he carried it through very cleanly and he left, so strings attached, he no longer belonged to anybody, he was on his own. The source surprisingly enough gave him a new ID and somehow a job, he was again an ADA, beginning Monday. He had this weekend to just be with himself, think, get accustomed. He walked into his room and smiled. He opened the drawers and saw his clothes intact, he just wanted to sleep now, tomorrow he would buy food and everything he needed to begin his life again.


	3. Close encounter

Phoebe woke up in a surprisingly good mood, despite the fact she didn't get much sleep, she went directly to Ben's room to see if he had waken up, he obviously had, he wasn't there. She made her way to the bathroom and bathed quickly. She dressed very casual, a pair of Vintage Jeans and a white turtleneck. She made her way downstairs and saw David and Ben playing in the living room. Ben was fully dressed in Khakis and a blue long sleeve shirt. David was swinging him in the air and Ben laughed enjoying the rush of adrenaline. "mommy!" he screamed in the air, David set him down and he came running to her, he jumped into her arms, "boo, you're up early" she said, Phoebe knew he loved being called Boo. It was what he called himself growing up. "I wanna go park!" he said, "ok, did you eat?" Phoebe asked, "Paige gave me a candy" he said, Phoebe rolled her eyes and set him on the floor. Paige was the spoiling aunt, she always gave Ben what he wanted, candy, chocolate, she even gave him coffee once because he had asked for some. She turned to David "hey you" she said, David came to her and planted a kiss on her cheek, "hey, so, we ready?" David asked, "yeah, I just, have to give this little one something to eat" she said stroking Ben's hair. They made they're way to the kitchen, Paige was there, drinking coffee. "Paige, stop giving my child candy" she complained, Paige looked up and smiled, "sorry" she always did the same thing, Ben went passed her and smiled. He had the sweetest smile. "what do you want to eat?" Phoebe asked Ben, "toast" he said, Phoebe nodded and began preparing him his breakfast. "so, where are you going?" Paige asked, "well, I was thinking of going to the park, than getting something to eat" David explained. "sounds fun" Paige said. "come wif us, come wif us!!!" Ben sang, "sorry Boo, I can't. I'm seeing Glenn" she said, Ben looked at her, "who's Glenn?" he asked, he tended to be very jealous with his aunt, "a friend, don't get jealous, you know you're the only guy for me" she said kissing his head. Ben smiled and ran to Phoebe who had his toast in her hand. She handed it to him and he gobbled it down quickly. "ok guys, Gotta go, have a nice day at the park" Paige said winking at him, he tried to wink back but all that came out was a weird smirk. "Boo, hurry up, we have to go" Phoebe said, he finished his toast and grabbed Phoebe's hand and led her out the door. David followed close behind, he loved spending time with Ben and Phoebe. Ben was amazing, he was the most amazing kid ever, he was smart and fast, he seemed a lot like Cole, but with Phoebe's sweetness. He would soak up all the time he could get with the kid, he loved him so much, he looked at him as his son. He had seen him come into the world, he had heard his first word, the first time he crawled, and walked, he had been there through it all. He had even offered Phoebe to be his father, but she said no, she said she didn't want him to grow up not knowing who his real father was, she didn't want to hide Cole from him. 

Cole woke up and bathed quickly, he was starving and he had no food in his fridge. he decided to got o a coffee house in this park he and Phoebe used to go t all the time. The food was great and the coffee was amazing. He would grab a quick bite to eat and than go to the grocery store, pick up some food and supplies for the house. He than had planned to go to the mall and buy some sheets and some clothes for him. All he had now were the old clothes in his closet and the black suits he wore in the underworld. That was no way to live, especially for a man with the inheritance that Cole possessed. He walked out and began his journey to the coffee shop, he should get a car too. He walked to the coffee shop just enjoying the scent of San Francisco. The cold wind blew against him, he wrapped his jacket tighter around himself. Trying to keep himself warm. He walked into the coffee shop and sat down and ordered a Mochaccino and a scone. He sat by the window watching the people go by, it was so good to be back. He often forgot how nice it was out of the underworld, the people, the air, the sun, it felt so good. He finished his scone and grabbed the remains of his coffee, paid the bill and walked outside. It was such a pretty day, why not walk for a while? He had all day. He watched as the kids played on the jungle gym, the people walked, jogged, skated past him. He felt so lucky. He walked lightly and a ball crossed his path, he stopped it with his foot. He knelt down and looked around to see if he could find the owner. A little boy came running toward him, "sir, my ball" he yelled, he was about four, he looked somewhat familiar to him. He knelt down to his height and smiled, he had the most pure blue eyes. "this yours?" he asked, the little boy nodded, "you know, it almost went into the street" he said, "yeah, but you stopped it, thank you" he said, grabbing the ball from Cole. "where are your parents?" he asked, Ben looked around him but didn't find anything, "I.." he was interrupted by a woman's screams, "Ben!?!?!" she screamed, the voice sounded so Familiar. Cole didn't realize who it was until she was down on the floor, hugging the boy, Cole was standing looking down at them shocked. The woman looked up and saw him, her heart plummeted to the floor.


	4. You put the Turner first

David and Phoebe had been watching Ben, he was fascinated with a ball that David had bought him. "he's so big, I mean, it seems like only yesterday he was learning to walk" David said, he noticed the distant look on her face, "hey, something wrong?" he asked, "what? No, I.." Phoebe said. Being in this place was so strange, she and Cole had been here so many times, it just brought back so many memories. "what? You can talk to me" David said, "it's nothing" she said, David knew that nothing meant something and something meant Cole, so he dropped it. "you know, if you ever need help, with him, I'm available" David said, he didn't know how to tell Phoebe that he wanted to be this child's father. "we've been through this, I can handle it, really" Phoebe said, as much as she appreciated his offers, she didn't want him to have another father. "no, I get it, but just in case" he said, "thank you" she said. She turned her glance back to Ben. He was still bouncing the ball up and down. "he looks a lot like Cole, I never realized it before" David said, "yeah, I know, he's a miniature version of him" Phoebe said smiling. "he says things that are so like him" she said, "you miss him don't you?" he asked, "well, yeah, I guess, I mean, how could I not?" Phoebe said, "well, you know, I thought you would've gotten over him by now" David said, Phoebe let out a laugh "so did I, David, so did I" she said, she turned back to where Ben was, he wasn't there, "where's Ben?" her voice panic stricken. "he was there a second ago, Ben!??!" he screamed, he couldn't help but panic too. "Ben?!? Oh my god! Ben!!" she began running around the park, she lost track of time and of David, she needed to find her son, "Ben!? BEN!?!" she screamed, she saw a black haired little boy talking to a man in the distance, she knew that was him. She ran to him and hugged him, "Ben, oh baby" she crushed him to her, holding him tightly, "mommy" he said complaining, "Oh Ben, don't ever wander off like that" she said, she pulled away from him and looked up, there he was, Cole was there.

"Phoebe" he uttered the words, not quite believing she was there. He saw her scoop the boy in her arms and look at him, "Cole" she said, they both stood silent just looking at each other. "He saved my ball" Ben interrupted, she tore her gaze from him and looked at her son, at their son, "yeah? well, say thank you to the man" she said, "Thank you" he said, she let him drop to the floor and he stood close by his mother. "hi" he said, still in shock, "hi" she said, she didn't know what to do or say. "um, how are you?" he asked, "I'm good, you?" she asked, "good too" he said, he looked down at Ben, pondering what he was to Phoebe, it couldn't be her son, it was probably Piper's or Paige's, he knew she was very promiscuous "is that…?" he asked pointing to Ben, "my son, yes" she said, Cole felt like a brick had been shoved into his stomach, although he saw some hope for his heart not to be completely broken. "with whom?" he asked, Phoebe didn't know what to do, what to say, she couldn't lie to him, and she knew he knew it was probably his, he looked so much like him. "um, he's well, um, he's.." she was cut off by David approaching them, "Oh thank god you found him" David said, as soon as he said this his eyes fell on Cole, he was in shock. "Cole" he said, "David" Cole said, not taking his eyes away from Phoebe, he than looked at him again, "David?" he asked, "Hi" he said, shoving his hand towards Cole. Cole took it harshly, "is Ben… yours?" Cole asked, Phoebe took the stance "No" she said quickly. Cole looked at her, "I.. we…us?" Cole asked, Phoebe bowed her head in shame "yes" she said, "oh, wow" he said, he was still numb. Although David broke the tension, "Phoebe. We have to go" he said, "um, David, I think me and Cole have to talk" she said, David looked incredulously at her, "what?" he asked, "we have to talk" she said, not taking her eyes off Cole. "why don't you go, I'll call you when I get home" She said, looking at him, "I… don't think that's a good idea" David said. "No, it is, me and her have to talk, that's.. that's my son" he whispered, David looked at him and walked away seething. He walked behind a bush and orbed out. Leaving Phoebe with the car, her son and Cole.

Phoebe and Cole walked pleasantly through the park, Ben in front of them, playing with what ever crossed his path. Cole couldn't help but fill with pride. "he's 3 and 7 months" Phoebe explained, "I.. was it after I left?" he asked, "yeah, when I found out I was two months pregnant, it was maybe a month after you left that I found out, I would've told you but I didn't know where to.." he cut her off, "I know, it's fine, I never came back, it serves me right" Cole said, watching him, he was so beautiful. "he's amazing" Cole said smiling, "he is" Phoebe said. "Phoebe, I.." Cole explained, "it's ok. Why did you leave there?" she asked, "I didn't like it, I was tired of it, I missed the real world, fighting, missions, killing, I didn't want to do it anymore" he explained, "how could you leave?" she asked, "um, deal with the source, I kill this witch and I had my freedom" Cole said, his eyes focused on Ben. Phoebe nodded. "and you did it?" Phoebe asked, "yeah, I had too, I wanted out" Cole explained. Phoebe nodded, right now she didn't care that he had killed somebody, she just cared that he was back, the father of her child and her one and only love was here. "what's his whole name?" Cole asked, "Benjamin Turner Halliwell" Phoebe said, "you put the Turner first?" Cole asked surprised, "don't be so surprised" Phoebe said smiling, Cole smiled back. Ben came running interrupting their sweet moment, "Mommy, I'm hungry" he said, "oh baby, I lost track of time, what do you want?" she asked, kneeling down. "I don't know, I'm tired" he said, his mouth forming a pout. "how bout I take you guys to lunch?" Cole asked, Phoebe looked at him, "Cole.." she said, "no, no excuses, please, let me spend some time with him, with you" he said, Phoebe nodded and grabbed Ben. "I want him to carry me" Ben said extending his arms to Cole "ok" Phoebe said, Cole's eyes sparkled as Phoebe gave him the child. He held him tightly, his eyes watering, he was holding his son, this was his creation, it was his baby. "feels good doesn't it?" Phoebe asked, Cole nodded, "you have no idea".


	5. I can't get you out of my head

Cole took Phoebe and Ben to lunch, it had been the most joyous afternoon he had ever had. Of course, Ben wasn't aware of Cole being his father, but he didn't care. He loved spending time with him, just indulging in his smile, and his sparkling blue eyes. Although the afternoon had to come to an end sometime. Phoebe drove Cole home, she slowed the car and parked it as soon as they arrived his house. "thanks for a great afternoon" Phoebe said, she had loved spending the afternoon with him and Ben. They seemed meant to be, they were so alike in everything, the smile, the way they walked. "Phoebe, I think you should come in, I mean we need to talk" Cole said, Phoebe nodded and turned to the back seat. Ben was sound asleep. "you're right, I'll just take him out, we can lay him down on the couch or something" She said, she got out of the car and opened the back seat, she cradled him in her arms as Cole held the front door open for her. She went in and lay him down on the couch, she took off her jacket and covered him with it and kissed his forehead. She than turned to find Cole standing at the door, watching her, a smile on his lips. "what?" she asked, "you're great with him" Cole said, "yeah, after a couple of years you learn" she said, she walked toward him. "I'd like to spend time with him" Cole said, "I know" Phoebe said, "I mean, I know I should've been here, and that I'm kind of late, I just… I don't think I could walk away from him.. or you" he said, Phoebe looked at him, "don't ok, please, nothing about us, we have to talk about him" she said quickly. Cole nodded, "well, I mean, maybe I could have him some days of the week, or visit him some time" Cole said anxiously. "I think he'd like that" Phoebe said, holding back her urges to jump in his arms. "so, how bout tomorrow, you two can spend the day with me" he said, "I'd like that" she said looking at him, she quickly corrected herself, "he'd like that" she said quickly. Cole smiled knowing that she wanted to spend time with him too. "so, tell me about him" he said, maybe he was knew in Ben's life but he had no intention on leaving. He would assume his role and try to get Ben to accept him as his father, if he managed to catch Phoebe too, than, that would be a very pleasant coincidence. "well, his birthday is June 30th, um, he started talking when he was 4 months old and he started walking when he was 5" Phoebe explained, they had moved into the kitchen and sat down comfortably. "wow, that's kind of early? I mean, is it normal?" Cole asked, "yeah, for a child that is part demon" Phoebe said jokingly, "oh, I forgot about my gene pool" Cole stated, "it's ok, we bound him, I don't think he can come out any time" Phoebe said, "oh, did it affect him?" Cole asked, "no, we were gonna vanquish it, but maybe in the future he can protect himself, when he gets a hang of his powers, I mean, cause he's part witch too, so we also bound those powers, maybe he can one day use them for good, like you did" Phoebe said. "so, what's up with the Boo?" Cole asked, he had noticed that Phoebe didn't call him Ben, she called him Boo, "oh, well, when he was younger he couldn't say Ben so when he wanted something he would say something like Boo wants bottle, at first we thought it was some imaginary friend, but after much crying and tantrums we realized Boo was him" Phoebe explained, Cole smiled just imagining it. "what was his first word?" Cole asked, it was silly how those little things mattered to a parent, they're first everything, but he knew that that was what would make his day. "Witch" Phoebe said, Cole erupted into a fit of laughter, "what? Why are you laughing?" she asked cracking a smile too, "you're kidding me? Witch?" he asked, his chest rippled with laughter, and Phoebe found herself trying to ignore how sexy it was, "yeah, that and demon, than he said mom, and he would call both Paige and Piper Poo, kind of like boo" Phoebe explained, "wow, what a character that son of mine" he said laughing, "yeah, he was, is, that son of yours" she said. It sounded even better when somebody else said it, "my son" he said proudly, Phoebe stood up and squeezed his shoulder "your son, I would never dream about taking that away from you, he's yours Cole, and mine" Phoebe said, Cole stood up and looked at her, "does he know about me?" Cole asked, "he knows he has a Dad, I just explained that he couldn't be around" Phoebe said, "does he have pictures of me? Or something to recognize me by?" Cole asked, "no, I threw away all your pictures when you left, it was too hard for me" Phoebe said sadly, "so what do I do? I mean, how do I tell a four year old that I'm his father?" Cole asked, "I…" she was interrupted when Ben came into the kitchen, a smile on his face, "mommy?" he asked, "yeah baby?" she asked, she walked to him and kneeled down, Cole watched mesmerized at the sight, "I thought you went away" he said hugging her, Phoebe laughed "I would never go away" she said to him, Cole couldn't help but feel guilty by this, "Maybe you two should go home" he said quickly, Phoebe looked up and cradled Ben in her arms "yeah, but, um, we're on for tomorrow?" Phoebe asked, Cole nodded and smiled, he noticed Ben smiling too, "what are you smiling about kid?" He said jokingly, "I missed you" he said, Cole looked at the child surprised, "what?" Phoebe asked just as surprised as Cole, "I want to go home" Ben said quickly, Cole looked intently at the boy "maybe you should go, he looks tired" he said, showing them to the door.

The drive home had been very pleasant, Ben fiddled with the radio and asked questions, but not about Cole. Phoebe was surprised that he hadn't asked about Cole, who he was? What he was to Phoebe? It never crossed Ben's mind. She was thankful for it but the surprise induced her to ask him about Cole. "Baby, aren't you gonna ask me about that man?" Phoebe said as she pulled into the driveway, Ben looked and smiled at his mother, "no, why?" he asked, "well, I just thought you'd be curious" Phoebe said, "I already know who he is" Ben said, this came like a shock to Phoebe, "what?" She asked nervously, how did he know? "he's the man in the picture in your drawer" he said smiling, "what picture?" Phoebe asked acting aloof, she knew exactly what picture he was talking about, "you know, the one in your drawer" he said smiling and ran out of the car and into the house, Phoebe stared at him, sometimes she regretted the fact that he was a demon, that he was much smarter and quicker than the other kids, he sometimes seemed to know things not even Phoebe knew or things she didn't want him to know, he just knew to much.

Phoebe walked in and found the house was quite quiet. She called out for Paige or Piper and Paige came out of the kitchen, "hey" she said happily, "hey, did Ben go upstairs?" Phoebe asked, "yeah" Paige said, she kept looking at her strangely "what?" Phoebe asked, "I.. you look different" Paige said, she seemed to be more joyous, happy. "I do? Probably the sun" Phoebe said, "where's David?" Paige asked, "oh, um, well, he kind of… we have to talk" Phoebe said to Paige, "about what?" Paige wondered, "let me get Ben into bed" Phoebe said. She knew she had to tell her sisters, they had a right to know, not only because they were rather close to Cole but because Ben would now be spending time with him, and they had a right to know where Ben was, when he wasn't with Phoebe. Phoebe made her way to Ben's room, she went in and he was playing with his toys, "come on, time for bed" she said as she walked to his closet and pulled out his pajamas. "I don't want to" he said quickly, "Ben, it's time to go to bed, please, let's not argue" she said, as she grabbed him and stood him up on the bed, she removed his shirt and put on his pajama top. "Mommy… it's Saturday, I wanna watch Leno" he said, Phoebe smiled, "Nope, no Leno" Phoebe said, "how bout SNL?" he asked anxiously, "Ben" Phoebe said, He pouted his mouth and retreated his arguments quickly. He lay down and Phoebe pulled the covers over him, "ma?" he asked, "yeah?" she said, "where's my dad?" he asked, Phoebe looked at him and didn't know what to tell him, "is my dad that man?" he asked again. Phoebe was even more shocked by this, "Ben, we've talked about your father, he left to do some work stuff, I… we've been through this" Phoebe explained, "why isn't he here?" Ben asked, Phoebe needed out, she needed to get away from his questions, "Ben, it's bed time" she said quickly, "where is he?" he asked again, "Ben, go to sleep" she said getting up and closing the door. She leaned against the door and sighed, this was gonna be much harder than she thought. 

When Phoebe arrived downstairs she saw Paige and Piper both sitting down waiting for her. "Hey" she said to Piper, Piper acknowledged her hello and patted the seat next to her. "we need to talk?" she said, Phoebe nodded and sat down. She looked at both her sisters intently before breaking the ice. "Cole is back" she said quickly. Piper and Paige looked at their sister shocked, "what?" they both exclaimed. Phoebe than proceeded to tell them the whole story about their day. Afterwards Piper and Paige looked at Phoebe, digesting the information. "so, why did he come back?" Paige asked, not that she wasn't glad, because if there was anybody she wanted to be together were her sister and Cole. She always knew that Cole had left to protect Phoebe, and if he had known that he had a son he would have come running back, but Phoebe never told him. "He said he was done with the underworld, that he was tired of it" Phoebe explained, Piper stood up and nodded "I for one think that it's a great thing that he's back, now you can tell David to leave you and Ben alone, and tell Ben about his father" Piper said. She had never forgiven David for what he had done to Phoebe and Cole. "wait a minute Piper, David is my friend, and He loves Ben, and Ben loves him, I mean it's great that Cole is back, for Ben's sake but…" Phoebe trailed off, she hated when Piper got like this. "Phoebe, are you listening to yourself? I can't believe you" Piper said, just as David orbed in. "Phoebe" he said, all three girls turned toward him, "David, hi, why don't you wait out in the living room, I'll be with you in a second" she said, David acquiesced and walked out. "we'll talk about this tomorrow" Piper said quickly as she walked out of the kitchen. Phoebe rubbed her temples in frustration, she felt Paige's hand on her shoulder, "It'll be fine" she said quickly before she left the kitchen, Phoebe smiled at her words and walked out to meet David in the kitchen. 

She found him sitting down on the couch as soon as she walked in he got up, "ok, before you jump on me, I'm sorry, but you have to understand that Cole is Ben's father, he deserved to know the truth and time with his son" Phoebe said, David nodded agreeing with her. "I agree completely, but I think you should tread lightly, not jump into this, be careful you know" David explained, "I'm not jumping into anything, my child is spending time with his father" Phoebe explained, "I have no intentions in getting involved with him, I don't think I could handle it" Phoebe said sadly. "I just… I know that you don't want to, but I can't help but expect you to jump back into bed with him, and after all that's happened…" he was cut off, "that's right, after all that's happened, I don't intend on going through it all again, especially now that I have Ben" Phoebe said quickly. "so, when is he gonna see him?" David asked, "tomorrow, we're going out" Phoebe said, "you're going to?" David asked, he couldn't help but hide the jealousy in his voice. "yes" Phoebe said, ignoring the tone. David nodded and decided to call it a night, he said goodbye to Phoebe and went back to his home, seething.

Cole lay awake in his bed, looking at the ceiling. He was too nervous to sleep, tomorrow he would spend time with his son and Phoebe. Oh, Phoebe. She seemed so much more beautiful, she looked wiser, there was just something about her that made his heart flip, more than usual. Just her smell, the sight of her with Ben, she was so perfect with him, she was so confident with him, as opposed to Cole who got nervous and panicked any time the kid wanted to be carried. And her hair, everything about her was perfect, it was a shame he wouldn't be able to be with her, she made it very clear that she had no intentions of rekindling the flame. He tossed around in his bed for while, just thinking about her. The way she moved, her slender figure even after giving birth, the way her sweater clung to her breasts, she was so beautiful, he had missed her so much. A day hadn't gone by since he left that he didn't think about her, he went to sleep every night thinking about her, it enraged him that he had been such a coward, he could've returned but than it became to late, he became the Source's personal assassin and than there was no turning back, the source wouldn't let him go, until he finally decided to leave. Coming back was one of the best things he could have ever done. He fell asleep with an image of Phoebe in his head, he slept like a baby.

Phoebe on the other hand, was more sleepless than ever, she couldn't get him out of her head, said in the words of Kylie Minogue. She tossed and turned trying to find comfort in the soft bed, without avail. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, why did he have to come back? This messed her up even more. Before she couldn't sleep because he wasn't here with her, because he couldn't. But now, he could be with her, but he wasn't. It made her mind baffle and scream for him. He seemed even more beautiful than the last time she saw him. He looked so much better, he was definitely more defined, his chest and arms beheld muscles that were transparent even through his black shirt. His hair was cut short like when they had first met, when he was just ADA Cole Turner. His smile was very sweet, although slightly tense, as if he hadn't smiled in a while. It was torture for her not to have him next to her. She walked out of the room and into Ben's, he was sound asleep, she crawled into his tiny bed and hugged him, he didn't even budge, she rested her head on his shoulder and fell into an uneasy sleep.

The next day Phoebe got up extra early, even before Ben who was usually the first one up, to watch cartoons he always said, Phoebe always said it was because of his father's heritage, who also woke up extremely early. She dressed quickly and than woke up Ben. He argued some about not wanting to take a bath, and than about his clothing. He wanted to wear cow boy boots, green pants and a red shirt, he didn't realize he didn't have any of these items of clothing, so Phoebe made him settle on jeans and baseball T-shirt with blue GAP sneakers.

She led him down for breakfast and served him Lucky Charms, he ate happily as Phoebe made coffee. Piper came in laughing with Paige, they greeted both Ben and Phoebe and sat down to drink some coffee. "so, you ready to see Cole?" Paige asked, she knew that Phoebe was nervous about seeing him "yes, there is nothing special about it" Phoebe said, "yeah, right" Piper said quickly, "shut up" Phoebe said quickly. "so, does Ben know?" Piper asked quietly, trying to make sure Ben didn't hear her, "no" Phoebe whispered, "you have to tell him" Piper said, "I know, I just.. I don't know how" Phoebe explained, she had thought of it a million times last night, how to tell him, but she never found a good subtle way, they all involved Ben growing up and becoming a junkie and telling his therapist that his mother ruined his life. The idea wasn't very pleasing to Phoebe. "It's ok honey, you'll find a way" Piper said quickly. 

Cole woke up that morning a bundle of nerves, he was going to spend the day with his son and Phoebe, it was nerve wrecking. He didn't how to handle children, he always got squeamish and jumpy around kids, and kids tended not to like him very much, but Ben was different, he had actually asked for Cole to carry him and wanted to be with Cole, and all Cole wanted to do, despite the fact that Ben was his son and he loved him very much, was step away, run, get out of there. But he couldn't, it wasn't possible, he would never be able to walk away from Ben, or Phoebe again, he was hooked. 

As he dressed he tried to imagine what it would be like, with his son, would they play ball? Talk about girls? Discuss politics? Try to find out why Shannen Doherty actually did leave that supernatural show with the sisters? Something interrupted his thoughts, the familiar sound of a shimmer caught his attention, in front of him was standing the source. "Balthazor" he said pleasantly, "what are you doing here?" he asked, if Phoebe were to arrive and see the Source there, it would completely ruin the whole thing, "is that any way to greet an old friend?" the source asked, "what the hell do you want?" he screamed, "ok, ok, calm down, don't get all hasty" he said, "I have a mission for you" he said, Cole laughed at his petition, "I don't work for you anymore" he said walked past the source, "wait, wait, I know, but if you were willing to do this one thing.." he was cut off by Cole, "what are you on? You gave me my freedom, I did what you asked, now leave me alone" Cole said quickly, "I'm just asking for a favor, friend to friend" the source said, placing a hand on his shoulder, Cole shivered at his touch. "no, get it, no, I'm in that stuff anymore, got it?" Cole said harshly, he couldn't believe he was speaking like this to The Source. "I'll give you lots of things, I found out you needed a car" the source said, maybe bribing him was a way to get Cole. "I can walk" Cole said shutting him down completely, "Cole, please, I need your help, you're the only one that can do this" the source pleaded, "NO, want me to spell it out, put into a graphic, NO" Cole said quickly and Harshly, he needed to get this guy out of his house, before Phoebe came. "ok, ok, I understand" The source said, "we could have done beautiful things together" he said, before he shimmered out, of course, the Source wasn't gonna give up so easily, and Cole knew that, but the best thing to do was ignore him for now.


	6. It got awkward

Phoebe pulled up to Cole's house, she was surprised to find a shiny silver convertible BMW in the driveway, well, of course, why was she so surprised? Cole was the kind of guy that drove those cars, shiny, irresistible, with a gorgeous man inside, it was classic. Of course she could have sworn that there wasn't a car in the driveway last night. She pushed the thought out of her head and got out of the car, Ben tagging behind her happily. He had no idea he was going to spend the day with his father, he just thought it was a friend of his mom, or so he made Phoebe believe. They rung the bell and Cole came out with a smile on his face, Phoebe smiled back and Ben just stared at them trying to figure out what it was, he sensed there was some sort of connection between the two. "Hi" she said sheepishly, he smiled and looked down at Ben "hi", Ben gave him a wide grin and waved. "Nice car" Phoebe said, Cole looked past her and his eyes fell on the BMW, he knew that only one person could have done this, the source. "yeah, I, uh, they just brought it this morning" Cole explained as he let both Ben and Phoebe into the house. They walked and Cole glanced back at the car once more, as he closed the door.

"so, where are you taking us?" Phoebe asked jokingly at Cole he smiled as he watched Ben begin playing around the house, "um, there is a tiny problem, yesterday I was supposed to buy some things but I didn't, I was wondering if you wanted to come with me, you could help me pick out my clothes" he said quickly, he knew Phoebe loved shopping and used to pick out all his clothes, she loved dressing him. "sure, why not?" she said, not trying to sound to eager, although she was ecstatic, it was like the good old days. "Ben" she called, Ben came running to her "you wanna go to the mall?" she asked, he nodded and continued playing around the house, Cole smiled proudly, "he's got good energy" he said, the kid hadn't stopped jumping around since he got there, "like his father" she said quickly, not realizing she actually said it. "ok, I'm ready if you are" he said, as he led them to the door. They walked out and argued over which car to take, Cole wanted to go in Phoebe's, he wanted nothing to do with the source's bribes, but Phoebe wanted to go in his car, given that it was new. They settled on Phoebe's because Cole could always shimmer back to his place.

"I'm telling you, white is not your color, you always dress in dark colors, they suit you better" she said as she took the shirt away from Cole, "why? I like it" he said, trying to snatch it from Phoebe, but she was to quick, "don't you like it better in black or gray?" she said showing him the black and gray shirt, "yes, but I have millions of shirts in those colors" he said, "so? One more wont hurt" she said flinging the gray one over her shoulder and walking to the next shelve of clothing. Ben was running around the two of them, and soon enough got tired, he quickly reached out for Cole, he proudly scooped him up and carried him while Phoebe kept picking out clothes for him. Cole held Ben closely and realized that that his head was resting on his shoulder, it felt like heaven. "maybe we should leave, this one looks a little tired" Cole whispered to Phoebe, "yeah, maybe, let's just pay for this, it's time for his nap anyway" Phoebe said as they made they're way to the cash register. "could you just.. my wallet is in the back pocket" he said, edging his backside toward Phoebe, she hesitated slightly knowing that she would have to touch him, but she sucked it up, she reached in his pants and grabbed his wallet, she felt his bottom against her hand and smiled, she used to love that bottom, she still did. She quickly took it out and paid for the clothes. 

Slightly unsettled they both walked out of the store and into the parking lot, "so I guess this day was cut short?" Cole said as he put a sleeping Ben in the back seat. "not necessarily, how bout we go to your house, we can make lunch or something and you can spend some more time with Ben" she suggested. Thank god she had Ben as an excuse, I mean, she loved her son very much and she would never dream of using him in anyway, but she could be with Cole "for Ben's sake". "that sounds great" he said smiling, he started the car and began driving toward his house. He turned to Phoebe and looked at her, she looked so beautiful, "what? Do I have something on my face?" she asked, yeah, beauty he said to himself, "no, It's just, you're being really great about this" he said, "how so?" she asked confused, "well, I mean, letting me spend time with him, I would've thought you would hate me, not trust me" he said sadly, "you came back for a reason, you're no longer evil, you know I'll always trust you" she said, he was astounded at her words, her wise beautiful words, they almost brought tears to hi eyes. "Thank you" he said proudly, she smiled at him and turned back to the road. "so I have a question? Are you here working or..?" she asked, trying to get off the subject, "yeah, I actually start tomorrow" he said, "an ADA" he continued, Phoebe laughed, "yeah, I know, I'm going back to my roots" he said laughing along with Phoebe. They arrived quickly at his house and unloaded Ben, Cole set him on the couch and looked intently at him. How could something so beautiful belong to him, he felt the same surreal way he did when he had Phoebe. He always questioned himself on how a demon as ruthless and cruel as he could have such a wonderful thing. He heard Phoebe move around in the kitchen and he went to accompany her, with the image of his son freshly in his head. "you have no food" Phoebe exclaimed, "oh, I forgot to buy, I've been eating out since I got here" he said sheepishly, "ok, take out?" Phoebe said, he nodded, "pizza or chinese?" Phoebe asked, "Pizza" he said quickly, "good" Phoebe said reaching for the phone, Cole watched as her delicate hands picked up the receiver, the fingers that used to touch him so carefully dialing the buttons. Her body shifted in various directions until she leaned on the wall, she gently spoke into the telephone, her lips moving in one of the sexiest ways possible. It seemed so odd that he found her sexy even when she was talking on the phone, he just wanted to do things to her, triple X things.

"that's the second time today" she said as she hung up, he was pulled out of his thoughts, "excuse me?" he asked, "you space out" she said, she had clearly noticed the way he looked at her, that lustful penetrating stare, the one that had enticed her long ago into love filled nights. She missed those nights. "I just… you know, you look so much more beautiful than before" he said, his teeth came down on his tongue just a bit to late. "Cole…" she said, pretending to be annoyed, despite the fact that she actually enjoyed the compliment. "Phoebe…" he said mocking her, he took one step closer to her, his body inches from hers. "what are you doing?" she asked as she slowly and reluctantly backed away from him. "what? I'm not doing anything, unless you want me to do something" he said, he couldn't take it, he needed her now, he needed her body, her lips, oh, he needed her. "no, stop this, please" she said, she didn't know why she said no, it was out of impulse, after watching to much movies. The truth was she wanted this to happen, she liked his breath on her, his arms slowly shooting up and touching her shoulders. "I know you want this" Cole said, Phoebe kept backing up until there was no more to back up to, her back was slammed against a wall. His body closed on her, pushing it hard against the wall, his hands slowly and tentatively touched her cheeks, she shivered at his warm hands. "Cole… don't do this…" she trailed off, she was staring into those blue eyes, nothing could deny the desire, his lips fell harshly on hers, and at first she tried to get out of it, but she felt herself melt into his arms, her hands entwined in his hair, oh that hair, it all came back, that love, that passion, it felt so good. His hands explored her curves and held her close to her, his tongue flung around desperately in her mouth, he needed more, more, more. Her legs shot up around his waist and he carried her to the table, he set her down as he crushed her to him. Love me, love me, I need you. Cole kissed her hungrily, his hands traveling over her body, it felt perfect again, it all fell into place. Phoebe indulged in his touch, her body trembled with desire and bucked under the pleasure of his fingers. "Ben.. he's in the next room" she said, her words muffled by his lips, Cole pulled away from her and looked at her, "Ben? Oh, Ben" he said, he was so wrapped up in Phoebe he completely forgot about his child in the next room. "this isn't such a good idea is it?" Cole asked, Phoebe looked at him, despite the craving of being with him, it just couldn't be. She smiled and laughed nervously, "no, it's not" she said, Cole backed away and she got off the table. He fixed a few unbuttoned buttons and she passed a hand through her tousled hair. Flattening it. "so…" Cole said as he watched her fix herself, "so.." she responded, it was done, it was awkward between them, they both knew they wanted each other, now it just felt weird. "maybe I should go" she said as she walked out of the kitchen, "no! Wait, what about Ben? My day with him? How will we work this out?" he asked, "um, ok, how bout you take him every other, other day" Phoebe said, "or weekends" Phoebe continued, she needed to get out of there, now, it was to much to take. "let me have for today" he said, "what?" Phoebe asked shocked, "I'll drive him home later, like maybe at 6 or seven, please?" he asked, he wanted to be with Ben so much. "I don't think that's such a good idea, I mean.." she said, but she didn't find and excuse, he was good, he had showed tat to her, she had seen it in his eyes, in his touch, he was back for good. "Phoebe, please, give me chance" he said, his eyes were so sad, so needing, "fine, ok" she said, his mouth curled into a more than luminous smile, "Thank you" he said. She smiled and walked to the door, "when he wakes up feed him, in about two hours he'll want some juice, there's some in his bag, he's potty trained but you have to go with him, help him out" she explained, Cole nodded and inscribed her instructions mentally. He accompanied her to the door, "I'll pick him up" Phoebe said, "no, don't worry, I'll drop him off, I'd like to see Piper and Paige" he said, he had grown very fond and close to both of her sisters, they were his family. "um, ok, what time?" Phoebe asked, "6 or 7" he said, Phoebe nodded nervously and walked out of the house. She didn't know why she was so nervous about leaving Ben with Cole, she trusted Cole, there was no need to get all jittery, he was in good hands.


	7. The Prophet

Cole watched Phoebe drive off, an incredible sense of longing overcame him, why the hell did he stop kissing her? Why the hell had he suggested that they not continue with what they were going to do? He thought to himself as he closed the door and walked to living room, he looked down at Ben, "that's why" he muttered to himself. It was all different now, they had to be more careful, mostly for Ben, especially for Ben. It was all different, they couldn't be going about like sex crazed teenagers, they had a son now. Cole sat down carefully as to not awake Ben. He rubbed his temples, he had a son, they had a child. When had this happened? It wasn't until now that he actually had a chance to digest this. Last night he digested the fact that he was back and that he had seen Phoebe, but now, Phoebe was the least of his worries. Now he had a life to take care of, he suddenly had college to worry about, he had fathers day, and Christmas presents to buy, he had birthdays, he had ball games and school plays, preaches about bad grades, someone to pass out his learning about women, puberty, adolescence, so many things. He quickly shook the thoughts out of his mind, the kid was only 3, almost 4. It was to early to start thinking about these things. The door bell rang and he quickly got up, the pizza guy was here, he paid the man and set the pizza on the coffee table and he resumed his place next to Ben. He opened the box and got out a piece, he bit into it, trying to relax. He felt Ben stir next to him and he quickly panicked, he set the piece of Pizza down and watched Ben as he woke up. His little hands rubbed his blue eyes, he looked around and than his eyes settle on Cole. "hi" Cole said, "where's my mom?" he asked, Cole panicked again, what if he didn't want to be here? What if he wanted his mother? What if he didn't like Cole? "she had to go home, but I'm taking you there later" Cole explained, was that to complicated for him? "oh, ok" Ben said, he looked at the pizza, "I'm gonna eat pizza" he said as he got up off the couch and in front of the coffee table, he grasped the piece of Pizza and began eating it. Cole was fascinated as he chewed, "yes, you do that" was all he could utter. "do you have something to drink?" Ben asked politely. Damn it! Something to drink, Cole, what an ass! He smiled at Ben, "yeah, let me check" he walked into the kitchen and slapped himself, although, he could make things appear, so why not… he held out his hand and a glass of coke appeared in his hand, that was one less thing to do, no grocery shopping. "here" he said as he handed Ben the glass, "thank you" he said as he took a sip. Cole smiled at him, although it intrigued him as to why he had been so comfortable with him. Other children tended to get nervous or untrustworthy around strangers, and to Cole, this is what he was to Ben, a stranger, a friend of his mothers. "do you have any toys?" Ben asked, "um, let me check" he said, he again got up and walked into the room. The one that would've been first Ben's room, the black walled room, although now it was totally blue again. He made in his hand appear a ball, a red shiny ball. He than went for something more sophisticated, "wow, sometimes I even amaze myself" he said silently as a laser gun set appeared on the floor, he continued to make toys appear until there was no more room. The room was filled with a boy's fantasy, Hotwheels, electric cars, balls, video games, GI joes, everything. He looked around smugly, "Ben!!" he called, Ben came running in, his eyes lit up when he saw all the toys, "wow!" he exclaimed, Cole beamed proudly, He saw Ben run all the way across the room to a little corner, where the small red ball lay. He picked it up and began playing with it. All this stuff and he chose the red ball? Cole asked himself. He watched as Ben walked out of the room and into the living room, Cole just stood there. "Cole!!!" he heard Ben's voice, Cole smiled, he knew his name. "I'm coming" he said as he walked out, "play with me!" he said as he threw the ball to Cole, he caught with one hand and looked at Ben, he was playing catch in the house, but it was with his son, so it didn't matter.

After an exhausting hour of playing catch, Cole collapsed on the couch, with little Ben in his arms. He was exhausted too. Ben cuddled his head in Cole's neck and clung to him, they were soon falling asleep, until something woke them up, or at least Cole, a cold wind, a very cold, evil wind went through him. He got up and walked into his room, he set Ben down in his bed and closed the door, he had a feeling, a very bad feeling. He waited for something to happen, and it did. The source appeared before him a smile on his face, "balthazor, did you get my present?" he asked, Cole nodded in disgust, "I thought you would have liked it, it's silver, shiny, people like shiny things" he said childishly, "go away, take your shiny car with you too, I don't care" he said, "Cole.. please, give me a chance, just work with me, do this one thing and it's over, I'll give you anything you want" he said, the source began to come closer to Cole. Cole was terrified, what if he found out that Cole had a son behind the door, he would take him away, it's obvious that Cole and Phoebe's son would be very powerful and he would want him for the evil side, Damn it, get out! "I don't want anything, just leave me alone" Cole said, get him out, he'll find out. "are you alone balthazor?" the source asked, he felt a presence, he wasn't alone. "of course" Cole said, a little too quickly. The source noticed that Cole hadn't budged form the door, "are you sure?" he asked as he edged closer to the door, "I have a woman in there" Cole said quickly, "oh, a woman.. well, that's understandable, you mortals, it's all about sex to you" he said, Close one Cole said to himself "now, back to our deal" the source said, "what deal? We have no deal! Get it through your skull, no deal, I don't want to work for you" Cole said, "just one job, you're the only one that can do it, what do you want? Money? Women?" the source asked, "nothing, I don't want anything because I don't want to do this for you, you gave me my freedom and I'm free to decide, I don't want to" Cole explained, the source looked at him, his rage building. He could have easily killed him, he had the urge to, to stop the insolence. But he didn't, because he knew that if he killed Cole there would be no way to keep on trying to convince him, and he would. He had an amazing tactic and could work words around so that anyone would cave, plus he wasn't one to give up that easily. "alright, I'll leave, for now" the source said. He flamed out, Cole could finally breath. It was over. He was gone, his son was safe. He quickly opened the door and ran in, he gently loaded Ben on his shoulder, he than ran around the house picking up his things, he had to get him out of there, just in case. He grabbed his bag and his red ball, the rest of the toys he would leave here, it was amazing how the source hadn't noticed the toys, or the messy house, it was even suspicious. He ran out and put Ben in his car, he buckled his seat belt and than ran around the car and got in on his side. He sped off.

Phoebe arrived at the manor and found herself quite bored, with her sisters out and Ben with Cole, it left her pretty much useless. She walked up to her room and changed into sweat pants and a sweater, she sat down on her bed and began correcting papers. She breezed through them quite rapidly, she noticed how silent the house was without the sound of Ben's little feet trampling around the house, or the shrieks of him playing, or the times when he tortured Kit and broke shelves and vases. It felt so empty without him. There was a time when she thought having a child would be impossible, now the only thing that seemed impossible was that Ben wasn't here with her. Ever since he had been born, the only time they separated was when he started day care. And that wasn't even after two years that he was born. For those two years he even slept with her. 

When she was released from the hospital he never slept in his cradle, he slept with Phoebe, in her bed, his little hand wrapped around her finger. It had been that way for until he was 5 months, but even than, he walked to Phoebe's bed from his room and curl up next to his mother. Her life without him was nothing, she lived and breathed for him. 

A chime of orbs pulled her out of her thoughts, she looked up and saw David, he was standing there with a remote control car "is that for me?" she asked jokingly, "yes, I'm very good with girly presents" he said beating her at her own game. Phoebe laughed at this, it wasn't everyday that David made a joke, he was a very serious man "where's Ben?" he asked, he loved to give Ben presents for no reason at all, Phoebe was worried that he would spoil him, but it seemed as though the more presents Ben got, the more of a humble sweetheart he became. "He's with his father" Phoebe said casually, David's eyes flew open, "his father? Cole?" he asked amazed, "no, his other father" Phoebe said sarcastically, "what? What the hell is he doing with him?" David cried, "he's spending the day with him, he should be back at around 6 or 7, if you'd like to leave a message, I'd be delighted to give it to him" Phoebe said as se corrected the papers that were sprawled on her bed. "Phoebe, he's with Cole, the Cole that abandoned you, the Cole that left to be evil, the Cole that has been evil for the past four years, the Cole…" he was cut off by Phoebe, "I know who he is David, and it's fine, he's good now" Phoebe explained, "yeah, that's what he said last time, and what happened?" David said, "he won't tell anybody" Phoebe said, she was very sure and confident in that Cole would not let Ben be harmed. "you remember why we bound his powers? Who he is?" David said, "yes, I was there, jesus, I know" Phoebe exclaimed, "than why the hell are you risking his identity being discovered?" David said, "did you tell Cole about him?" David asked, "no! Of course not, it never came up" Phoebe said, she felt she was being bombarded with missiles, make them go away, please. "he can't know, if he knows, everything is screwed, we have to stick to the plan, you know that and the plan did not involve Cole coming back into his life, he's bound to trigger something off" David explained, "David, don't worry. Ben will be fine and so will your mighty kingdom and his power will go to your side, but you have understand, to you and Jim he's a prophet, the all mighty prophet, but to me, he's my little boy, a little boy that has the right to know where he came from" Phoebe explained sadly. "I've already put him through a lot, and in the next years he's gonna discover things, he's gonna discover what he is, and I know he'll feel lost, I just want him to know that he has a mother AND a father, and we'll help him get through it" Phoebe explained, "Fine, you win, you always win" David said getting up, he set the car on the floor and the control on the bed, "tell him it's from me" he said, he kissed Phoebe's forehead and orbed out. 

Phoebe let herself fall back on the bed. What a mess, what a big mess. Why did this have to happen to her? More importantly to Ben, he was just a child, he was just a baby. She closed her eyes and tried to push the memories out of her head. 

But they didn't go away, she remembered what happened when he was born, what he had caused, the chaos, the marvel, the… door bell.

The door bell was ringing, she opened her eyes and ran downstairs, it was to early for Ben to be home, that was strange. She opened the door and indeed, there was Cole with a sleeping Ben in his arms, "Cole? What are you doing here so early?" Phoebe asked, she noticed that Cole was slightly panic stricken, "I wanted to see Piper and Paige" Cole lied, "oh, well, Um there not here right now, but come in" she said, she moved and Cole came in, she closed the door behind him. "why don't we take him upstairs, to his bed" Phoebe said leading the way. Cole nodded and followed her upstairs and into the little blue room, he almost stepped on some toys that were strewn about, "careful, he's very messy" Phoebe said, Cole chuckled and lay him down on his bed, "is it normal that he sleeps so much?" Cole asked, he had noticed that Ben slept more than he was awake, of course when he was awake he was a ticking bomb, but still. Phoebe panicked quickly, "has he been sleeping too much?" she asked, "well I mean, we played for like an hour and than he fell asleep in my arms, he's been sleeping quite some time, and before we got to my place he was sleeping, I just noticed some strange pattern, is he sleeping alright in the evening?" Cole asked concerned, "yeah" Phoebe said, the panic was obvious, not so much the panic but the fear, it was almost time, the bound was getting to him. "are you ok?" Cole asked, "yeah, yeah, he's just a kid that tires easily" Phoebe said as she walked out of the room and into her own, what was she gonna do? It was too soon, Cole tagged closely behind her. "are you sure you're ok?" Cole asked, she turned around and was face to face to him, "yes, I'm fine" she said, she was staring deeply into those blue eyes, she forgot about everything, she was sucked into that little passionate world once again, and she knew Cole felt it too. "you seem worried" Cole said, "no, no, why would I be worried?" Phoebe said, "just checking" he said, although he wasn't convinced, he could still see the worry in her eyes. "are you sure, cause you don't seem ok" Cole asked again, "I told you, I'm fine, just tired " she said, Cole nodded. "so…" Cole said, "so… this is awkward" Phoebe said, "yeah, kind of" he said looking around the room, "you have new wall paper" Cole noticed, "yeah, um, I changed it.. you remember my wall paper?" Phoebe asked, "I could trace every little flower with my eyes closed" Cole said smiling, Phoebe smiled, "do you remember when we broke the bed?" Phoebe asked, Cole chuckled, "yeah, that was… memorable" Cole said to Phoebe, "we had good times didn't we?" Phoebe asked, "the best" Cole said, Phoebe nodded and walked toward the window "you know, we can still have them" Cole said, "Cole… we said that it wasn't a good idea" Phoebe said, "I was wrong, we were wrong" Cole said, he turned Phoebe around and she looked straight into those blue orbs, was it possible that they were wrong? And if they weren't, was so it so wrong to feel so attracted at this moment? Maybe sometimes the wrong thing is the right thing to do, these were the same doubts that crossed Phoebe's mind she had found out Cole was a demon. "what kept you from coming back all these years?" Phoebe asked, it was kind of out of the blue, but it mattered. Why had he come back now? Was this another plan? No, it couldn't be. "I don't know, pride, I didn't want to hurt you, because I knew that if I came back you might not want me, and I wasn't ready to risk that" Cole explained, "what made you want to risk it now?" Phoebe asked, "I had nothing else to lose" Cole said. It was true, back than he had his job to lose, but now, he didn't care if he lost his job. "why do you want to go through with this? I mean, if this doesn't work…" Phoebe trailed off, "don't think about that, it will work out, I promise" he said, Phoebe looked into his eyes, trying to decipher what it was that he was saying, what he was feeling. "I don't know, what if…" Cole put a finger to her mouth, "no what ifs, just here and now, do you want this?" Cole asked, "I don't know" she said. There wasn't another answer, at least right now, she wanted it, yes, but there was something that was keeping her, a feeling, Ben or David, she didn't know. "I guess it's settled than" he said quickly he turned on his heel and left.


	8. The war

A.N. : First of all I just wanna thank everybody who's been following this series, you have no idea what a boost of energy and self esteem it is, especially at this point in my life. I would like to give a special Thanx to Charming Becca and Ashley (sightunseen), I swear you two are like my muses, and I may not know you very well, but You guys rock!! And Lily, thank you so much, not only for inspiring me but for letting me know I'm not the only crazy person in this crazy world.

No, don't go, don't go, don't leave me here. She just wanted to scream out, but she didn't, she stood there, just watching him, hearing him go down the stairs, shutting the door. His car started and she heard him speed down the street, oh no, don' t leave me, please. Come back, please. Phoebe walked to her bed and sat down, what did she do? What made her drive him away? She just wanted to be sure that this was the right thing to do, but not if that made him walk away. She got up and stubbed her toe on the car. The car! Damn car. She rubbed her toe and picked it up, she walked into Ben's room and put it in a corner next to all his other toys. She began placing them in his toy chest trying to not make sound. She felt Ben stir behind her, she turned and saw him toss and turn, he was having a nightmare, his breathing became rapid and in pants, She walked to him and shook him, trying to wake him. He didn't, he kept on turning, "Ben! BOO!! Wake up, boo!" she screamed, she shook him and still nothing happened, "Ben!! Baby, wake up" she said, she shook him a bit more and he opened his eyes. They were filled with terror, his forehead had beads of perspiration. "are you ok?" she asked nervously, he reached up to her and began to cry in her shoulder, "oh, honey, don't cry, oh Boo, what's happening?" she asked, she gently rocked him. She carried him out of the room and picked up the phone. "Piper? It's me…" her voice was trembling, "Phoebe, honey…" Piper said through the speaker, her voice filled with worry. "I… it's Ben" Phoebe said. Piper immediately hung up and Phoebe knew she was on her way. Phoebe walked down to the couch and sat down, Ben still sobbing in her shoulder, she rocked him back and forth, shushing his tears. She got up and walked to the kitchen, she set him on the counter and he watched her, his eyes filled with tears, she pulled out a Tommy Tipi glass and gave it to him. He sucked on it eagerly and Phoebe just watched him, holding his hand. "call my dad" he said, Phoebe looked at him, he knew, he knew Cole was his father, how did he know? "your dad?" Phoebe asked still soothing his hand. "Call him, please" she said, Phoebe swallowed and reached for the phone. She dialed the numbers she knew by heart, "Cole? It's me" she said, "it's Ben" she said, it took him no longer than two second, he had shimmered in front of them, Ben was in no way surprised that he could shimmer, he turned to Phoebe searching her face for answers, he than turned to Ben and saw his tear stained face, his blood shot eyes and his pouty mouth. He just lunged to him and held him. 

Cole had just arrived home when the Phone rang, he picked it up after maybe three rings, "hello?" he said, "Cole? It's me" the voice said, he knew exactly who it was. "Phoebe, what's wrong?" he asked, "It's Ben". That was it, the tone of her voice made him worry. His son, his baby. What had happened to him? Who did what to him? He would kill them, he would kill whoever tried to touch his kid. He shimmered there immediately, not caring what Ben might think, somehow he just smiled when he arrived, and clung to his neck and buried his face in his shoulder.

Piper arrived quickly and walked into the kitchen, were she saw the most beautiful and surprising picture, Cole holding Ben, Phoebe standing there, just watching them. Piper felt in place, she felt like every thing was back in place, somehow Cole being here had made it ok. "what happened?" Piper asked, "Piper, the dreams" Phoebe said, Cole of course didn't understand what they were talking about. "what dreams?" Cole asked intrigued, "Piper, it's too soon, it can't be, not yet, please" she cried, her tears spilled down. Piper ran to her and hugged her, she whispered to her that she had called Paige and that she too was on her way. "should I call David?" she asked, "can somebody please explain what's happening?" Cole asked, "no, no, don't call him, he'll take him away, please" Phoebe said desperately, "calm down, ok, we won't call him" Piper soothed. Cole stood up and held Ben closely, "can somebody please tell me what the hell is happening to my kid?!?!" he screamed, Ben jumped in his arms and began crying, "Cole!" she exclaimed, "I'm sorry, Ben" he looked at Phoebe and pleaded to her, "Come here" she took Ben from his arms and handed him to Piper. "take him upstairs" she whispered to piper, she could hear Ben call out for his mother and his father, but she needed to tell Cole about, and she reluctantly ignored his calls. She pulled Cole into the living room and sat him down, she paced in front of him trying to collect the words that she would say to him.

"ok. Now you're scaring me, is he sick or something?" he asked Phoebe, just the thought of it made his heart cry. "no, no, god forbid, NO" She said quickly, "our son… he isn't normal…." Phoebe said, Cole looked at her intrigued, although her statement was obvious "yeah, I know, demon half witch, but there's something more" he said, "would you let me finish?" Phoebe asked, Cole nodded almost embarrassed "when Ben was born, well, it was big mess, because he caused some sort of glitch in the balance of good and evil, because he's part demon and part witch" Phoebe explained, "now, the powers that be felt the glitch and they were positive that the evil side felt it too, which they did, and that's when they told us to bind him, so that the evil side wouldn't try to find him, so to the people in the underground it was passed as a lost battle or a simple little earthquake" she said, Cole nodded, he remembered that about 4 years ago there had been a minor earthquake in the underground, but it was rather small, so it didn't really matter to them, they just went on with the killings and the evil. "and? Why is this happening to him?" Cole asked, he stood up and walked toward Phoebe. "when they bound him, it wasn't a bind against his powers, it was a bind to the good side, although his powers came with it and in time we would remove the bind so that he could use his powers, although he would still be strapped to the good side. Jim and the elders did all this and broke tons of rules to do it, because of this, the bind would have repercussions, tonight was a repercussion, torments, suffering, feelings that in the end would lead to the dark side, but since he's strapped to the good side than that would keep him, or his soul from wanting to go, but his body would want the bad side, to stop the pain, and that brings forth a war, a huge war between good and evil and everything that's soul and matter, and that is what the elders called the prophet" Phoebe said, she took a breath and studied Cole's shocked expression, "the prophet is Ben, if he is capable of surpassing the pain and staying to the good side, we would have a second God, a powerful being that can create and save anything or anyone, but if he doesn't, that's when the war comes in" Phoebe said, Phoebe knew this story by heart, she had spent sleepless nights when she was told the problem, of course the elders had told her and the sisters after they bound him, a moment in which nothing could be done, "and what happens in the war?" Cole asked, "the prediction is that Ben's soul would succumb to the dark side, and we would have a person three times as powerful as the Source, one step down from Lucifer, it would be chaos" Phoebe explained. "ok, I just have one question, why the hell did you let this happen? This is your fault, the reason he's up there crying for his parents is because you let this whole thing happen, if you would have not bound him…" Phoebe interrupted him, "they would've taken him away from me, the source would have taken him from me, and besides the elders never told me they had done it. David came down two days after I gave birth with him, that was when I got to hold him, to feed him… Nobody told me about this, nobody helped me through it" she explained, "are you blaming this on me? Are you saying that my not being here affected the outcome of this?" Cole asked enraged, "No, I never said that, you being here would have helped me, not Ben, nothing would've helped Ben" Phoebe said, Cole was struck by his words, he was on the verge of tears, holding Phoebe's stare, he could see the pain he had caused her, he just wanted to hold her, to kiss her. 

Paige came flying in the door, "I came as fast as I could, where is he?" Paige asked, she didn't look twice at Cole, she was just concerned about her nephew. "he's upstairs" Phoebe said sadly. She rushed upstairs not even acknowledging Cole's presence. "Phoebe, I'm sorry that I wasn't here… I mean…" he was cut off by the chime of orbs, he thought it was Leo, but it wasn't. David appeared in front of him. "What happened?" David asked Phoebe, "it started, he had a dream" Phoebe said, David's eyes opened wide, his fear surfacing "it can't be, it's to soon" David explained and turned in Cole's direction. He hadn't even noticed he was there, "Cole" he said surprised, "glad you finally noticed I was here" Cole said sarcastically, David looked at him menacingly, "what are you doing here?" he asked, "Something is wrong with my son, it's my duty to be here" Cole answered smugly, "you know, many things were wrong with your son in the past 4 years, I never saw you run here" David said, he obviously held a grudge against Cole, not only for leaving but because he was jealous, in a way. Phoebe's heart belonged to him, he learned that the hard way, and he was Ben's real father, he had everything that David could have ever wanted. 

"Ok, guys, come on, stop this" Phoebe said, she had to intervene, she saw the look on Cole's face and grew scared of what would happen next, she quickly stepped in between the two men. "what did you mean about it being to soon?" Phoebe asked David, "just that, the dreams weren't supposed to come this soon, he's to young t handle them, not only that, but the dreams are sent by us, we haven't sent anything" David said, "than who sent the dreams?" Cole asked, "you know? Phoebe did you tell him?" David asked alarmed, Phoebe nodded "I had to David, he's Ben's father" Phoebe said, "I thought we agreed that he wasn't going to know anything, if this were to get out… how do we know that he's not working with the source still?" David asked, "I'm still in the room, in case you didn't notice" Cole said, "Cole…" Phoebe said, "No, don't Cole me, how could you agree to something like that? He's my son for god sakes!" Cole yelled, Phoebe walked to him, "calm down, I didn't agree on anything, he suggested I not tell you, but I knew I couldn't hide this from you" Phoebe said calmly, Cole looked at her and smiled appreciatively, "Thank you" Cole said, he wanted to just kiss her, but he couldn't. "ok, so, David, why don't you go up and try to find out what's going on, if you guys aren't sending the dreams than… find out who is" she said, David nodded and kissed her forehead, it was sort of their friend thing, he always, always kissed her forehead when he was leaving, and orbed out. Cole stared at the two, trying to digest the kiss. It was a small kiss, a peck, nothing important than why did he want to rip his head off? "you.. come with me" she said as she pulled his sleeve, she lead him upstairs and into Ben's room.

In the room Paige was gently rocking Ben, who was still sniffling and crying. Piper stood beside the bed watching the two. Phoebe and Cole came in and Piper turned toward them, "what happened?" Piper asked Phoebe slowly explained her conversation with David, "what do you suggest we do?" Piper asked, "How bout you and Paige go to the book, see if there's a demon or something, or a spell, I don't know" Phoebe said, "ok, Paige, come on" she said, Paige walked to Phoebe and handed her Ben. He immediately grabbed on to Phoebe's neck, almost choking her. Paige passed by Cole and smiled, "welcome back daddy" she said patting him on the shoulder, Cole smiled and watched as Piper and Paige walked up the stairs towards the attic. "it hurts mom" Ben said, Phoebe's eyes filled with tears, she turned to Cole for help. He just smiled at her and took Ben from her arms, "come on, it's ok" he said, not only to Ben but to Phoebe. "do you wanna go to sleep?" Cole asked Ben, he nodded, "if I do the man will come back" Ben said, Cole looked down at him, "I won't let him do anything to you, I promise" he said, he kissed Ben's forehead and lay him down on his bed, "don't leave, not until I'm asleep" Ben said, Cole nodded and pulled the covers over him. He sat on the edge of the bed and Phoebe walked to him and sat beside him. This was how it was supposed to be, like family, a nice family. Cole turned to Phoebe and smiled, "it'll be ok" he said, he had no idea how, but in the end, it was always ok. "how do you know? How can you be so sure?" Phoebe asked, she was losing hope, which was rare in Phoebe, she was the one that used to say it would be ok, but now, she honestly didn't see how it could be ok.

Ben eventually fell asleep and Cole and Phoebe moved out of his room, and went o hers. How convenient, Phoebe thought. She walked in and moved her papers off the bed, Cole watched her curiously, "those the papers you have to correct?" he asked, trying to break the silence, he knew it was a lame question, but what the hell. "yeah, first grade, it isn't so difficult" she said showing him the papers, that were filled with sentences and spelling tests. "I personally never liked first grade" he said, "why?" Phoebe asked, "well, in first grade you're kind of in the air, you don't know what the hell is going on" Cole explained, "what grade did you like?" Phoebe asked, "well, I liked second grade, it's better than first and easier than third, form third up it's just hard" he said, Phoebe laughed, "how do you come up with these things?" Phoebe asked, "well, contrary to popular belief, I do think" Cole said coming close to Phoebe, she smiled at him. "you know, you've handled this great, a lot better than I handled it when I found out" Phoebe said, "it's ok, I just. You know, I guess I have to be the rock" he said, he knew that Phoebe was breaking a part, he had to be there to pick up the pieces. "Thank you, thank you so much" she said, "It's ok" he said, pulling her into an embrace. She buried her head in his chest, just lingering in the familiar aroma of his clothes, of him. It just felt safe, being in his arms, and she felt safer when he kissed her. His lips gently closed on hers, she didn't know when it happened, but it did, and it was fine. He cupped her face in his hands, trying to make the moment last as much as possible, he lost himself in her kisses, in her touch, in the circular motion of her hands on his back, in the way her hands went through his black hair, a little ray of light in so much darkness. It was magical, it was amazing, it was… Ben, Ben screamed and cried. Phoebe and Cole separated from each other, and ran to his room. Cole quickly scooped him up, he felt the hard kicks of his son against hi stomach. If Cole weren't as strong and built as he was, he would have been hurt, They quickly tried to wake him up and as he did both Paige and Piper came running down the attic stairs, the two had fallen asleep after their endless and fruitless search in the Book of Shadows.

After much patronizing Ben finally calmed down in Phoebe's arms. He had managed to stop crying although he still sniffled a bit, his eyes were filled with tears. "Piper, why don't you call Leo, David was supposed to come back a long time ago, but…" Phoebe said, Piper nodded "Leo!!!" she yelled, making Ben jump and begin crying again, Piper immediately jumped as well, and began apologizing to Ben, but he didn't want any of it, he was having a fit, all he wanted was his mother and Phoebe obviously knew it, she quickly got up and went to her room. Cole didn't know whether to go with her or to stay here and hear Leo's explanation. He turned to Piper and she nodded, letting him know he should stay here. The chime of orbs pulled him out of his trance. 

Phoebe cupped Ben's head and muffled his cries, wanting desperately to make him calm down. She herself began crying, she was desperate, she didn't know what to say to him, or what to give him. She sat down and pulled Ben away from her, so she could look at him. His blue eyes were bloodshot and red, his cheeks were puffy and tear streaked. She gently wiped the streaks away from his face, "Ben?" she asked, he looked at her, his bottom lip trembling, "mommy, it hurts, make it go away" he said pleasingly, it broke her heart to see him like this, she pulled her to him and laid down, spooning him. "close your eyes baby, just close your eyes" she said, she felt his head nod, "no, if I do he'll come, he'll hurt me" Ben explained, "who?" Phoebe asked alarmed, "the man, the bad man" he said, he was short of breath, "shhh, I'm here, I won't let him hurt you, I promise" she said, "mommy, don't let him hurt me, please" he said, Phoebe hugged him closer and gently closed his eyes with her hand, "I promise" she said.


	9. The Puzzle

Cole waited anxiously as Leo appeared, but as soon as he saw Leo's face he knew something was wrong, something was very, very wrong. "what happened?" he asked almost aggressively, "Cole? What are you doing here?" he asked, Piper nodded, "no time, what's up with Ben?" she asked, "we don't know, David and Jim are looking further into it, but it's definite that they aren't in charge of the dreams, something is accelerating the process" Leo said, "I don't understand" Piper said, "you know that when he was born the whole prophet thing came up" he began, Piper nodded "well, they were planning on doing that a lot later in his life, not now, because he's to young, which means that he's more prone to succumb under the suffering" Leo said, Cole quickly caught on, "so, maybe it's somebody who wants this process to accelerate" he said, "why would the elders want to do that?" Paige asked, "they don't… that's why our speculations are that…" Leo was interrupted by Cole, "someone from the other side" he said, Leo nodded, while Piper and Paige panicked. "how? How could that have happened?" Paige asked alarmed, "it's no for sure, but if it's true, we don't know" Leo said. "wow, this is a lot to take" Cole said as he sat down on the bed, "Cole, why don't you go check on Ben and Phoebe, we'll call you if we need anything" Piper suggested, she knew it was a lot of information and no moment to digest it, but that was kind of how life had always been in the Halliwell home. Cole looked at Piper, as if waiting for further acknowledgement, she simply nodded and yes, trying to tell him that it would be ok, that was ok for him to take a break, although what he didn't get was the fact that Piper wanted him out of there as soon as possible, she couldn't help but feel that Cole was a suspect in this situation, I mean, what a coincidence that as soon as he had come back this had begun to happen, somebody from the other side had found about Ben, and he came from the other side, so… "are you sure?" Cole asked, Piper was pulled out of her train of thought, "yes, go talk to Phoebe, she needs to know this" Piper said, Cole nodded and walked out of the room.

Cole exited his son's room, not certain why Piper had been so insistent. He had no idea that it was because he was the prime suspect in this horror film. He walked into Phoebe's room and watched carefully as her body curled around Ben's. The same way his body had curled around hers when they were together. It was amazing how well they fit together, it was is if they were both a piece of a puzzle, and it was the same way with Ben. The picture was just right.

He walked in trying to not make any noise that could wake them, he made his way around the room examining the surroundings. He reached her dresser and looked down at the pictures that sat atop of it. They were all of Ben, Ben when he was newborn, Ben with Phoebe, Ben with Piper, Ben with Paige, Ben with Piper, Paige and Phoebe, Ben with Leo and Piper, and Ben with David.

David?!? What the hell was David doing with his son?! That was his, he wouldn't let him take it away, Ben was his, just like Phoebe was his. It broke his heart to see Ben so happy with David. It was strange, not because Ben was with David because they looked right. Just as Phoebe looked right curled around Ben's body as they slept, it was all part of a puzzle, a puzzle he wasn't part of, it made his heart cry, his soul break, his body ache, he turned to Phoebe and saw her stir, her eyes opened and looked around the room. Her eyes landed on Cole, "hey" she whispered, he waved a hand and smiled. "did Leo find out anything?" she asked, trying to disentangle herself from Ben, without avail, she didn't want to wake him, so Cole walked toward her and sat down on the bed, "not much" Cole said, he didn't want to tell her just yet, she would get nervous and scared, the last thing he wanted was that. Phoebe looked at him and nodded, "I'm scared Cole, I'm very, very scared" she said, her voice breaking, Cole nodded and squeezed her shoulder, "I know, me too" was all he could respond.

She watched as Cole answered her, she saw her own pain like a mirror in his soul, he was hurting too, he needed something to make him hold on, and so did she, maybe that was the reason she uttered the words, maybe that was why she asked him to hold her, "could you do me a favor?" Phoebe asked, "yeah?" he said, "hold me, please, just hold me" she asked. She saw his eyes smile, his soul reach up, his heart crawl out of that pit that they were both in and spoon her. His strong arms enveloped her, and their length braised Ben's chest. He held them closely, and the picture was perfect. The puzzle was complete.


	10. a weird thing

"what? What do you mean? What son?" Cole asked, acting aloof. "cut the crap Balthazor, I know about your little family addition" he said as he fiddled with some things in the bathroom. "how?" Cole asked terrified, "You may be a great demon but you're not good at hiding things" he responded. "are you the one sending those visions, the dreams?" Cole asked, "Give the man a prize" he said sarcastically, and a bit to loud, which caused Cole to react, "would you be quiet, please" he said, the source nodded. "what do you want?" Cole asked, he would do anything to make the dreams stop. "I want you to work for me again" the source said. Cole held his stare, trying to analyze his petition. "No, I won't do that" he said, "than your son will be in eternal torment and he'll cross to my side" he explained calmly. "so either you come, or I'll make him come" he said, almost gleefully. "how? How did you find out?" Cole asked defeated, "Like I said before, you're not very good at hiding things, especially a boy who's almost as powerful as I am. When I went to see at your house, I could just feel that energy, from behind the door. It was just pumping, trying to get out, So left and did my homework" he explained, "I don't get it, how did you find out about him" Cole asked, "well, I did some tracing, some mind hacking and I found myself with the image of a miniature version of Balthazor", "so, do we have a deal?" the source continued. Cole looked intently at him. He had to accept, it was him or his son, and he preferred his son. "yes, I'll do it" Cole said. It took all his strength to do so, but he just had to do it.  
  
The source smiled, "I expect you to be in my office tomorrow, bright and early", "What about Ben? His dreams" Cole asked, "I'll stop sending them, if you comply with your tasks" he said, as he flamed out. Cole sighed harshly, he rubbed his temples in frustration and sat on the toilet, trying to put it all together. It was bound to happen, there was too much happiness in his life, he was bound to jinx some how, and he did.  
  
Phoebe turned in bed searching for Cole's sweet embrace, but didn't find it. She unwrapped her arms from Ben's tiny body and sat up rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She stood up and walked out of the room. She past Ben's room, where Piper, Paige and Leo where all asleep. She ignored them and walked on to the bathroom, as she had seen the light from under the door. She opened the door to find Cole sitting on the toilet and smiled at him. "what's wrong?" she asked, "what? Oh, nothing, just had to go to the bathroom" Cole said, trying as easily as he could to dismiss Phoebe, his guilt didn't allow him to look at her. "well, your pants are up, so that's kind of an obstacle" she said as she looked curiously at him. "oh, yeah, I…." He said getting up, "I have to go" he said quickly. Phoebe looked at him, "was it something I said?" she asked doubtfully. "No, no, I have to work tomorrow, you know first day and all" he said as he put his hands on her shoulders, she nodded "right, first impression is the most important thing" she said. He smiled down at her and kissed her forehead, "I'm gonna say goodbye to Ben" he said as he walked past Phoebe.  
  
Phoebe watched as Cole left, just staring at him. He was different all of sudden, he was acting strange. She walked out of the bathroom and back to her room where she saw Cole kneeled down next to Ben, waking him sweetly. "Ben?" he said, she saw Ben move and open his big blue eyes and smile at the sight of his father. "dad?" he asked, Cole smiled and nodded, "I have to go champ, but I'll see you tomorrow?" Cole said, Ben jumped up and clung to Cole's neck "don't go, don't go, the man, the bad man, he's gonna hurt me" he screamed. Cole squirmed under Ben's tight grasp. "No, no, he won't, I won't let him, just stay here with mommy, k?" he said, Cole got up from the floor and walked toward Phoebe who was leaning on the door frame, "help?" he mouthed, Phoebe smiled and tried to unclench Ben's little fingers from his neck, "boo, please, come on, daddy has to work" Phoebe said as she finally managed to get Ben away from his father. "the man, the bad man is gonna get me" Ben screamed. His high pitched screams woke Piper, Paige and Leo, who came running into the room startled. "another dream?" Piper asked, Phoebe nodded, "he doesn't want his father to go" she explained quickly. "the man!! THE MAN!!" Ben screamed desperately. Cole grabbed his face and looked him in the eye, two blue eyes looking into even bluer ones, "he won't do anything to you, I promise, I'll make sure of it" Cole said as he placed a kiss on his forehead. This some how managed to get Ben to calm down, and a smile crept on his tiny lips. "you promise?" Ben cooed affectionately, "I promise, cross my heart" he said as his eyes drifted to Phoebe's smiling lips. He smiled back and kissed her, it was a small peck, the kind that Husbands give to their wives before going to work, the kisses that are shared in small settled families. Was that what they were? A family? Cole shook the thought out of his head and ignored the questioning stares that came from Piper, Paige and Leo and shimmered out.  
  
All of the people present in the room were surprised at Cole's demonstration of affection, even Phoebe. Not that she was complaining, but it was still very out of the blue. She regained her composure and smiled at all in the room.  
  
Paige looked questioningly at Phoebe, "are you..? did you…?" she stuttered, "I don't know, I think so" Phoebe said smiling as she walked out of the room to tuck Ben in.  
  
"ok, am I the only one that feels that Cole and Phoebe getting back together is a bad idea?" Paige asked making sure that Phoebe was out of hearing range. "no, me too" Leo said, "I don't, I think she deserves to be happy again" Piper said, defending they're relationship. "you don't get it Piper, I mean, yeah it's great for her and for Ben, but…" Paige trailed off, "now? I mean, do I have to remind you that Cole is our prime suspect in this movie?" she continued, "yes, but… I don't know" Piper said, Leo looked curiously at her, "hey, you were the one that suggested that he be branded the candyman" he said, "ok, first of all, I never ever said he was a killer, and two, the man that was just in here didn't seem like he was in some sort of plot, he seemed like an honest man who is completely in love with his son" Piper explained. Paige and Leo both looked at her and in some way agreed with her. They had seen the same thing that Piper had seen and it was unfair to Cole, Phoebe and Ben to deny it.  
  
Phoebe walked with Ben to his room and put him in his bed, he squirmed a little, as he was afraid to leave his mother's side. "I'll sleep here with you honey, don't worry" she said as she pulled the covers up to his shoulders. "poo?" he asked sweetly, "yes?" she asked as she walked around the room picking up some stray toys. "did my dad go away for good?" Ben asked innocently. Phoebe turned around abruptly, surprised at his question. "No, no, he had to sleep a little more and than get ready for work" she explained, "when is he coming back?" Ben asked. He didn't admit it, but he was terrified at the thought of his father not coming back, "well, after school, I'm taking you to his house, so you're gonna see him again, he's not going anywhere Boo" Phoebe said as she kissed his forehead. "will you sleep here with me tonight?" Ben asked, "yes sweetie, of course" she said as she settled her head uncomfortably given the smallness of the bed and closed her eyes, her hands stroking Ben's hair. "Poo?" he asked one more time, "yeah?" Phoebe said without even moving her head, both her eyes clothes, "I'm tired, I can't go to school tomorrow" he said. Phoebe laughed, he might be a prophet but he'll always be a kid.  
  
As Cole shimmered out he smiled at what all the people in the room might have thought of his little peck. It was nice to know that you could still surprise the Halliwell family. He reappeared in his home and he set his jacket down on the couch, trying as hard as he could to forget his pact with the source. It all seemed like a dream, and he was ready to wake up. Although he was afraid to do so, if he did he might not be with Phoebe and Ben, but if they ever found out about Cole's "job" than he would lose them anyway, it was never a win win situation when it came to him.  
  
He crashed on the couch trying to close his eyes, "don't go to sleep now, we have a lot of work to do" he heard the voice, the voice he despised more than anything in the world. "now?" Cole asked, "yes, now" the source said as he flamed out, Cole let out a loud breath and shimmered after him.  
  
Phoebe woke up with a blinding pain in her neck, it must have been the position of her head. She opened her eyes and sat up carefully, as to not to hurt herself more. She looked at Ben who was sound asleep. She stood up and walked out of his room quietly, she went into the bathroom and brushed her teeth. She than made her way downstairs to the kitchen where she found Piper making pancakes in the shape of little animals, the way Ben liked them. "How'd you sleep?" she asked as she flipped a pancake over, "good, although my neck hurts like hell" Phoebe responded rubbing her neck. "Ben? Did he have anymore nightmares?" Piper asked. She and Leo had gone to bed shortly after, Leo left very early this morning to check if the elders had found out something more. Paige had left for work too. "no, thank god, he slept like an angel" she explained, "that's weird" Piper said, Phoebe looked at her, "that's good" she corrected her sister. "oh, yeah, it's great, but you know, it is strange, that from one day to the next the dreams went away" Piper explained. She was more than happy that Ben was feeling better, but still, it was very odd. "I honestly don't care if it's weird or not, I'm just glad he's feeling better" Phoebe explained as she took a bite of a pancake. "so, what's up with you and Cole?" Piper asked, not very subtly. Phoebe smiled, just the thought of Cole, it made her smile. "I don't know, I was gonna call him, but I take it it's a little early, plus he starts work today, so he's probably not even home" Phoebe explained. "I still can't believe he's back, you think it's for good?" Piper asked, "Hopefully, I mean…" she was interrupted by Ben walking into the kitchen, his little hand was rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Morning" he said from the door, "morning baby, how are you feeling?" Phoebe asked, "better, I'm hungry" he said, "good, because I made you some animal shaped pancakes!" Piper screamed, taking the plate to Ben, who smiled immediately and Piper and him began in a session of name the animal, a game Ben very much liked, he always won.  
  
Phoebe smiled at the site, she was so glad that he was better, she had felt so impotent last night, not being able to calm him. "Morning" a voice said in her ear, she turned and saw David, a smile on his face. "I take it he's feeling better" he said pointing to Ben and Piper. "he is, thank god, did you ever find out what it was?" she asked still concerned, what was keeping who or whatever was in her child's mind from doing it again? "No, we're still looking into it, but we're more than certain that it's from the other side" he said. Phoebe immediately panicked, "what? How? How did the other side find out about him?" Phoebe asked, "hey, hey, calm down" he said pulling her to the side. "we have theory, but we're not sure" he said, he was almost afraid to say it. "what is it?" she asked, almost as frightened as he was. He pulled her aside "well, we think it might be…" he was interrupted, and he thanked the gods for it, "hey David" Piper said happily, "hey Piper" he responded, not with the same enthusiasm. "Phoebs, don't you have to be at work?" Piper asked, Phoebe looked at her and nodded, "I called George and told him that Ben was sick, he said it was alright, that they would get a substitute teacher" Phoebe stated, Piper nodded. "what was it you were going to say?" Phoebe asked David, "we think it might be…" he was again interrupted, by the familiar sound of a shimmer. "dad!!!" Ben yelled as Cole began to appear, he jumped into his arms, "hey!! wow, are we feeling better?" Cole asked as he smiled at his child's energy, "yes we are" Ben said happily, Cole smiled and looked around, he saw David and he saw Piper, but they all faded away as soon as he saw Phoebe, she was wearing the same thing she was wearing last night, her hair was tousled and she had dark circles under her eyes, but she seemed more beautiful than ever. "hey" he said as he approached her with Ben in his arms, she smiled at him. "hi" she said sheepishly, almost embarrassed, she wished that there weren't so many people in the room. She forgot about everybody, she forgot about David and about Piper, it was just Cole, Ben and her.  
  
David watched as the glances that were exchanged between them, it was all love. He hated it, he hated watching Phoebe all mushy with him. But he understood, he understood that he would never be part of that family, he would never be the father of Ben and Phoebe's only love. He slowly orbed out and apparently no one noticed, Phoebe was to involved in Cole's eyes, and Piper had walked out a minute ago, also noticing that the three of them deserved to be just the three of them.  
  
"I thought you had to work" Phoebe said as she stroked his tie, "I finished" he said, never losing track of Phoebe's finger. He had indeed finished his job, it was a very simple assignment, he had to kill a witch that posed a threat to the source, he did it and it was over, although he was still strapped to the source. He could come by any minute and tell him he had another assignment and threaten him to kill his child, it wasn't over, it would never be over. "what are you thinking?" Phoebe asked, "what? Oh nothing, just…" he trailed off, "what?" Phoebe asked, searching his eyes for the answer, "I was thinking if I could kiss you" he said sweetly, Phoebe smiled at him, "well, it will cost you" she said as she closed her lips on his. 


	11. Suspects and Happiness

Authors Note: well, I'm real sorry about how long it took me to get to the next chapter, but after the accident I wasn't fully recovered, in fact, I wasn't at all recovered, my right side still seemed to freeze up, so I had to undergo some more therapy, and than I went back to school and had to finish up on my thesis or else I wouldn't graduate. 

But, thank god, I'm better now, I can almost fully move and I am graduated, so now I have more time. Thank you for all the get well mail I've been getting, you guys rock!!!! 

Well, anyway, the show must go on, Hope you like this chapter! (please, ignore all the grammar errors, I didn't proof read it, please, just ignore them)

Barb, this is juts for you J

"ummm, how much do I owe you?" Cole asked, as he parted his lips from hers, "nah, it's on the house" she said. "so, I um, I have a little surprise for Ben here" Cole said as he rustled Ben's hair. "yay!!" Ben yelled, "what did you get him?" Phoebe asked, "you'll see" he said, "well, you aren't going anywhere until you take a bath young man" Phoebe said as she scooped Ben from Cole's arms and began walking out of the kitchen, Cole just watched them. He felt so happy, he really did, despite the fact that he had recently killed a witch, it all seemed to have disappeared, that pain of having killed another human being. The pain in the witches eyes, her struggle and screams seemed all to have vanished when he saw Phoebe and their son. "you coming?" Phoebe asked from the door, Cole looked at her and nodded and ran after them. 

David watched the scene in his crystal ball, loathing every minute of it. He hated how Cole's hand curved around Phoebe's waist as they made their way upstairs, he hated how Ben laughed happily at Cole's goofy faces, he hated that Cole was Ben's father. It was unfair to him, Cole hadn't been around for the last four years, and David had been his from the first moment he was born, and he loved the child, he absolutely adored him. It wasn't fair that Cole, having showed up two days ago got all the attention from both Ben and Phoebe. 

Phoebe walked into the room where both Ben and Cole were sitting on the bed, she smiled at Cole and grabbed Ben, taking him to the bathroom. Cole quickly followed, as he arrived at the bathroom, Ben was already in the bath tub, while Phoebe began grabbing soaps and shampoos from the cabinets. Cole just watched the scene, silently. She was so good at this whole mother thing, he was amazed at her natural talent. "so, what is it you want to show him?" Phoebe asked as she lathered Ben's hair. Cole looked at her and smiled, "well, I kind of had a free time after work and decided to make a little room for him, at my house" he said happily, he quickly noticed Phoebe's change of mood. "what?" he asked, as he tried to analyze why the sudden frown? "nothing" she quickly said, "something's wrong, tell me" he said, almost afraid of what she was going to say. "tell me" he said, "I just, I think you might be rushing into this" she said, as she poured water on Ben's head, washing out the shampoo. "I don't understand" he said, "nothing, just forget it… can you pass me that towel?" she asked, pointing to the one behind Cole. Cole passed her the towel, but persisted. "I won't forget it, tell me" Cole said. "It's nothing, Cole, it's just, well, you just came back like 3 days ago, I mean, it's a bit fast for you to start setting up rooms for him and stuff" Phoebe said. She couldn't help but feel a bit suspicious, not suspicious, apprehensive was the word. She was frightened really, frightened that he might just want to take him away. "I'm not going away if that's what you're afraid of" Cole said, as he watched Phoebe pick Ben out of the bathtub and carry him out of the bathroom wrapped in the towel. "It's not that Cole, I mean, well, yeah, it is that, what if you leave again?" Phoebe asked. Cole's face contorted into some kind of hurt expression, how could Phoebe think that he would leave, again? "I won't leave" he said as he walked to her and hugged her. Ben watched from the bed happily, his feet dangling from the bed and the towel wrapped around him. Phoebe squirmed and tried to get out of his embrace, "Cole… Not here" she said, but Cole held her tighter, "I won't leave" he said again, kissing her squirming forehead. "Cole…" she said, "I WON'T LEAVE" he said once more, until Phoebe finally surrendered to his embrace, and kept still under his arms. She let out a large sigh and looked up at him. She saw it there, he wasn't going to leave, in his eyes she could only see devotion and commitment, nothing more. She smiled and pecked his lips, he smiled and they both turned to Ben who was now giggling happily. Cole smiled at him and Phoebe quickly separated herself from, embarrassed of the spectacle that had been created in front of Ben. Cole on the other hand wasn't embarrassed at all, and he grabbed her arm, pulling her to him and kissing her deeply. She hesitated at first, but than lost herself in Cole's lips. While Ben giggled happily as he watched his parent's contentment.

David watched the whole scene, he seethed internally, and his hand quickly knocked the crystal ball down, making it shatter. Damn him, damn him to hell! He couldn't believe this was happening to him, he had been there for four whole years, and now Phoebe was trading him in for a man that had abandoned her, a man that hurt so much more that anybody could understand. He paced around the room, only to find himself face to face with his father. "dad! You startled me" he said, as Jim walked into the room. "son, I think we have a situation" he said. "yeah?" David asked, "we might be on to something about Ben" Jim said. "you do? What is it?" David asked worriedly. "we did some investigations, we sent come angels and archangels to check up on what was going on, they found out that somebody did some sort of black magic and found out about Ben, well, by a hunch" Jim explained, "a hunch?" David asked, confused. "somebody, we think it was probably the source, got a hunch that something was going on, and he did his homework" Jim said, alerted. "who could have led him to this "hunch"?" David asked, Jim bowed his head, and nodded, "our prime suspect is… Cole" Jim said. David looked surprised at him, "you think?" he asked, Jim than nodded, "well, it is quite a coincidence that Cole came back ad the boy started having these dreams, and you and I both know, there is no such thing as coincidence" Jim explained. David appeared to be sad, but inside, h was rejoicing, he knew it had to be Cole, he just knew it. "So, do you think that he's still working for the source?" David asked, "we don't know, it might have been some sort of slip up on Cole's behalf, but that's very unlikely, but we're still on it, let's no give any f the Halliwells any information, yet, until we have something concise" Jim explained, as he walked out of David's room. David was gleaming, he was so happy. Happy that Cole might be vanquished, and that Phoebe was probably going to dump him, he was just, so amazingly Happy.


	12. Oh no, not again...

Authors note: Well, sorry it took me so long, I wasn't in town, therefore I didn't have my computer, I was away undergoing some physical therapy, and I'm a lot better, thankfully!

Well, I was rather surprised that there has been such great response to this fic, thank you all!

Oh, and Chloe, sure, go ahead, I would traduce it myself but I don't know squat Brazilian, I can speak Spanish though (I live in Venezuela) so go ahead, knock yourself out, but just be sure to give me credit, email me if you like, I'm very flattered by the way, thanks! J

Also, I tried to divide it up in little paragraphs so it would be easier to read, but I'm sorry if it's not the best, in Spanish we are used to writing huge long paragraphs, I guess it's a culture thing, I'm sorry though. (Ignore grammatical errors, pleaseeeeeeeeeeee!)

After Ben was dressed and ready to go, they got into Phoebe's SUV, the one that was passed down from Prue to her and drove to Cole's house. As they entered, Phoebe noticed that the place had been painted over, and furnished expertly, it looked amazing. "Cole? When did you have time for this?" Phoebe asked, as she watched Ben run and jump on the black leather couch.

 "I did a little magic" Cole said winking at Phoebe, she smiled and nodded at him. "you should've used that magic when you first bought the place" she said. She remembered four years ago, when he had showed her this house, and he never ever got around to painting it. He tried once, but other engagements got in the way. Specifically, getting Phoebe into bed. "hey, kid, come here!" he said, as Ben came running toward him and jumped in his arms, "I have something for you" he said, Ben smiled and his eyes twinkled. "toys? Candy? What? What?" Ben asked excitedly, as Cole carried him to his room. Phoebe watched from a distance, trying to digest the fact that Cole was back for good, to digest what this whole room thing meant. Was it a commitment proposal in disguise? She felt herself panic, she couldn't commit, not because she didn't want to, but because, if he were to leave again, she would devastated, and it was different now, because she had a son, and she couldn't let herself abandon him for a quick romp in the sack, or even worse, a broken heart. 

"mommy!!! Come here, you have to see this!!!!" she heard him say, she was pulled out of her trail of thought, and walked rapidly to Ben's room. She was shocked when she saw the room. It was perfect, it was all for him. It was baby blue (so I have a thing for baby blue, sue me), the bed was a big blue car, toys were scattered everywhere, from the ceiling, hung a little remote airplane made little circles, and the whole room was surrounded by a huge set of train tracks, with a little train that paraded itself around the room. "I.. can't, wow, Cole, it's amazing" she said, as she watched her son run around, following the train. "you like it?" Cole asked, as he took a place beside her, "it's gorgeous" she said, looking at him, "when did you do this? How?" she asked, "this morning, I told you with a little magic" he said, winking at her. "I can't believe you" she said chuckling, "what? Nothing's to good for my son" he said, putting an arm around her shoulder.

 She smiled up at him, "so, how is this going to work?" she asked, "what?" he asked confused. "this, I mean, you get Ben every weekend, or.." she paused, noticing the worried look that crossed Cole's face, "what?" she asked. "I… I was hoping that maybe… he could be here all the time" he said. Phoebe's eyes grew wide, she quickly wriggled out of Cole's arm and walked out of the room. Cole followed her closing Ben's door, so that he wouldn't overhear anything. "Cole… that's not how this works, you can't coma back here and take him away from me" she said as soon as she heard the door close. "I don't want to take him away from you" he said quickly, he was obviously missing something. 

"than, the him being here all the time is what? A strategic move? NO! You will not take MY son away from me!" she said angrily. "I didn't mean it like that! Phoebe… I want him to be here…with you" he said, trying to get through to her. "what?" she asked confused. "I guess, what I'm saying is.. I want you to live here, with me and Ben.. like a family" he said quickly. 

She was stunned, she didn't know what to say. Was it possible that he was actually going to settle down, no more going evil? She watched as he came closer to her, he put his hands on he shoulders and looked at her intently, "I love you" he said sweetly, "and I want nothing more than to have a life with you, and with OUR son" he said. He couldn't read her expression, she surely didn't know how to feel, or what to feel. But he was being nothing but honest, he wanted her so much. "Cole.. why are you doing this? Why are you doing this to me.. again" she said, as she withered out of his grasp. "doing what?" he asked confused. "this… four years ago you said you loved me, and that you would love to be with me forever… and you left" she said, "I can't let myself get wrapped up in your words, because that's what they are, words" she said. 

He was hurt, he was deeply hurt. "Phoebe, please, just trust me" he said, "I can't Cole, I can't commit to you, and not because of me, because I honestly don't care about me, but for Ben's sake" she said sadly. Cole looked at her, every word cutting his heart. "Phoebe how many times will I have to say this, I won't leave, not now, not after Ben, I can't" he said, not giving up on his attempts. "what guarantee of that do I have?" she asked. Cole ran to her and his lips closed on hers, he pressed hard until it almost hurt. "that's a guarantee" he said separating herself from her, "I love you, and I'm head over heels in love with our son, I can't leave, I won't leave" he said once more, if that didn't convince her, nothing would. 

Phoebe analyzed his words, his stare, and it all seemed to fit, it al seemed to come together, maybe he was here for good, maybe he was going to stay with her. Maybe it would be better this time around.

David orbed into the Halliwell kitchen, only to find Piper, lost in her cooking world. "Piper, where's Phoebe?" he asked nervously, Piper looked up and rolled her eyes. "Hi David, I'm good, how are you?" she said sarcastically, "there is no time Piper, something's going on" he said. Piper put everything she was doing down and walked closer to him. "is it about Ben?" she asked nervously, "yes, it is" he said. "Phoebe isn't here, but.. PAIGE!!!!!" She screamed. In a matter of seconds Paige presented herself in front of Piper. "what?" she asked, "it's Ben" she said. Paige's eyes grew wide, "what? What happened to him?" she asked, looking at David. "I..ok, we might have a lead on who is sent those dreams, and I don't think you guys are gonna like it" he said. Piper and Paige both stared at her, alarmed at his words. From the way he was hinting, they knew that it was the Source, but there was something else there. He wasn't telling them something. "who is it?" Paige asked. "it's... maybe we should wait till Phoebe gets here, don't you think?" David asked. Piper and Paige looked at each other, the most logical thing to do was wait for Phoebe, but they both felt that the words that were going to come out of David's mouth, weren't going to be of Phoebe's liking. 

"no, we'll tell her later, who is it?" Paige insisted. "we THINK it might be Cole" David said. Paige stared at David, somehow she knew that he was going to say that. It was the most logical thing to think, there was just something suspicious about the fact that the moment Cole had come back, Ben starting having the dreams. But, she still denied herself the belief. 

Piper, on the other hand, was practically outraged. "this is so typical!" she screamed. "you and your dirty little tricks, don't you ever stop??" she asked. David looked at her, astonished. "Piper..." he began, but she immediately cut her off. "when will you get it??  Phoebe, doesn't want you, she doesn't love you, stop trying to make her life a living hell!!!!" She screamed. Paige put a hand on her shoulder as if telling her to calm down. "I won't calm down! I am so sick of you!! I hate you and I know that Phoebe hates you too!!" she screamed hysterically. David looked at the red faced Piper, he gently nodded, almost ashamed of being there. "I never knew you felt that way about me Piper" he said sadly. He never imagined that Piper could ever feel like this towards him, but he KNEW that Phoebe didn't hate him, maybe she didn't love him, but she didn't hate him. 

He gently nodded his uncertainty away, "well, um, in the end, what matters is the facts, not personal feeling or how you feel, I'm just the messenger" he said sadly. Piper almost regretted having acted this way towards him "Just tell us what you came to tell us" she said in a harsh but subtle tone. "look, I'm not saying that he was the one who told the source, I'm just saying that perhaps, he might have done something to tip him off" David explained. "so, you're not blaming him?" Piper asked, "I never said I did Piper, and it's not sure, it's a possibility" he explained. Piper's stare softened slowly. "Listen, I'm gonna go, when Phoebe gets home, please, call me, I'll explain everything" David said, shortly before he took one more look at the Halliwells and orbed out. 

"you think you could've been harder on him?" Paige said sarcastically. "Oh please, Paige, you know that everything I said to him was well deserved" Piper explained. "yeah, Piper but still, it's called tact, look it up" Paige responded as she walked out of the kitchen. "you think he used tact when he broke Cole and Phoebe up?" Piper said, as she quickly followed Paige to the living room. 

Paige stopped in her tracks and turned to her sister, "do you think he's lying this time?" she asked Piper. "yes! Of course I do" she said, "do you?" she continued. Paige looked intently at her sister, "I don't know, I really don't" she said sadly as she made her way upstairs. "do you think I should call Phoebe?" Piper screamed after her, she could vaguely see Paige nod yes. Piper watched her and let out a big sigh, what now?


End file.
